Chapter 23 You really can't tell just by looking at it...
It's not a big deal, it's just that people need time to accept it.
Now Tang Mingli has figured it out: neither her friend Li Baohua nor Tang Mingmei's encounter with a scumbag is a big deal. Aside from causing a slight emotional fluctuation, it hasn't had any significant impact on her life.
After thinking it through, I feel much more relaxed.
When she came out of the bathroom, she looked radiant.
Perhaps because she was wearing loungewear, she exuded a lazy vibe, which made Fu Ci a little envious.
What initially attracted him to his wife was her relaxed and carefree demeanor, something others could only envy.
How could anyone live like that? It's like everything in this world, which can be summed up as nothing more than food, clothing, shelter, and transportation.
Later, Fu Cizhen couldn't help but ask his wife, but she just joked that she had already had enough in her past life.
"What are you thinking about?" Tang Mingli noticed her husband staring at her absentmindedly, so she waved her hand in front of his face.
She certainly didn't think she had captivated him with her beauty after a bath; she was probably just tired from reading for too long.
Thinking of this possibility, Tang Mingli thoughtfully checked the condition of his thermos.
There was still half a cup of water left, so she didn't bother to make a fuss.
Fu Ci snapped out of his reverie and smiled at her: "I remembered what you once said."
This is truly unexpected.
What philosophical, memorable, and still remembered words she uttered?
Tang Mingli couldn't remember at all, and she thought it was impossible, but Fu Ci wouldn't lie.
I could only ask, "What did you suddenly remember, and why are you thinking about it so intently?"
Tang Mingli sat down opposite Fu Ci, resting her chin on her hand to admire his handsome, angular face.
If conditions allow, you really should look for a handsome guy when you're looking for a partner; beautiful things can really make you live a more peaceful life.
Fu Ci replied, "Do you remember a question I once asked you?"
These words, unsurprisingly, earned him a piercing glare from Tang Mingli.
The two had spent two years together, and even if they hadn't communicated much, they must have asked each other a lot of questions, if not four figures. How could they have come up with this based on just one sentence?
Actually, after Fu Ci finished speaking, he laughed and quickly said, "I once asked you why you live such a relaxed life."
Oh, so that's what it is.
Who would remember? I have no recollection of it at all.
"You said you were tired enough in your past life."
Tang Mingli finally remembered. It happened a year ago. Why did she suddenly remember it again?
She was telling the truth, but she knew Fu Ci wouldn't believe her, and she couldn't possibly say it outright.
He was a staunch materialist who didn't believe in past or future lives, only that one could control this life, so he was unwilling to waste a single second.
She asked lazily, "Why did you suddenly think of this?"
"Because of seeing you like this."
"I'm not like this just now."
She didn't ask Fu Ci what she looked like now, since she was pretty much the same, and judging from Fu Ci's tone, she seemed quite happy. So she automatically assumed that she was beautiful both then and now.
Fu Ci nodded with a smile.
Indeed, but he thought that every day she looked like that would become a memory for him from time to time.
This feeling was unfamiliar to Fu Ci. Even though she was always by his side, he couldn't bear to part with what time had taken away from them, and with every single day they spent together.
The two had lived together for two years and had developed a certain level of understanding.
The fact that he resigned indicates that the topic has been discussed to a near end.
Perfect timing, she also wanted to tell him about going to her uncle's house tomorrow.
Needless to say, she has to get up early tomorrow.
The question is, how early? This is a very important question for Tang Mingli.
At first, when Fu Ci heard his wife suddenly become serious and say that she had something to discuss, he thought it was something important. But when he heard that it was just about how many days he should get up tomorrow, he couldn't help but chuckle.
But after Tang Mingli gave him another sharp look, he immediately straightened his attitude.
Getting up might not be a big deal for him, but if his wife thinks it's important, then it must be.
After discussing it, the two decided to get up at 8:30 and leave at 9:00, so they could arrive at their uncle's house around 10:30.
Have lunch, chat, and you'll be back around 2 or 3 pm.
Fu Ci originally suggested 8 o'clock, so that there would be enough time to wash up and eat breakfast.
But Tang Mingli preferred to shorten her time for washing up and eating breakfast, and sleep for an extra half hour.
The plan is all set; now it's just a matter of waiting for tomorrow.
Tang Mingli was full of confidence.
Fu Ci laughed at her, "It's just a visit to a relative's house, but you're planning it like you're going on an errand."
but……
"Can you really get up at 8:30?"
"Absolutely no problem."
Tang Mingli was not lying. The next day, when Fu Ci called her to get up at 8:30, she sat up without any struggle.
He picked up the computer from the bedside table, glanced at it, and said with some regret, "It's more than thirty seconds too early."
Even though Fu Ci already knew his wife loved to sleep, he couldn't help but chuckle when he heard this.
"Is it that precise?"
"No, not exactly." Yet his eyes held a hint of resentment.
Being so meticulous about sleep in this life must mean I was extremely sleep-deprived in my past life.
-
Tang Mingli took five minutes to wash up and quickly changed her clothes. She arrived downstairs at a little after 8:40.
Because she had specifically instructed Zhang Guihua, today's breakfast consisted of fresh milk and pan-fried buns.
Tang Mingli ate a steamed bun in three bites and drank a glass of fresh milk in two sips, cleanly and efficiently.
Fu Ci, sitting opposite him, was dumbfounded.
He had thought that she would be bored eating breakfast alone, so he would keep her company and chat with her, but it seems that he didn't need to at all.
After wiping her mouth with a tissue, Tang Mingli looked up at the clock.
It was only 8:50, ten minutes before my scheduled departure time, so I had plenty of time.
She smiled and looked at Fu Ci, asking, "Are you ready?"
Fu Ci nodded.
"Then let's go."
The two got up, picked up the things they were going to take to the Tang family, said goodbye to their families, and went out.
Walking in the yard, I watched my wife, who was enjoying the morning sun with a happy expression, and heard her exclaim that the weather was really nice today. The leaves were more lush, the flowers in the flower bed had buds, and the birds were chirping more noisily than before. I wondered if the birds had returned from the south.
Fu Ci suddenly became distracted.
He woke up at six o'clock, did his morning exercise for an hour, took a shower, ate breakfast, and read a book for a while. I woke him up right on time.
But the two and a half hours I got up early didn't seem to have as much meaning as those few minutes I spent walking with her.
-
Perhaps because it was a day off, or perhaps because there were fewer pedestrians on the road at this time, Tang Mingli and her group had a smooth journey and arrived at the station more than ten minutes earlier than expected.
As soon as she got out of the car, Tang Mingli was suddenly filled with emotion.
If this continues, the number of times I've visited my uncle's house this year will soon equal the total number of visits in the past two years combined.
It's really tiring.
But the worst was yet to come. When you got to the tenement building, if you were unlucky enough to run into a few neighbors, you'd have to deal with them mentally and physically.
Sometimes, a person's intuition is just that accurate. Tang Mingli had a premonition that she would run into her neighbors today. Sure enough, as soon as she entered the courtyard, she encountered several middle-aged women who were more enthusiastic than usual, waving to her as soon as they saw her.
Tang Mingli could only smile and walk towards them, offering polite greetings.
"Aunties, how have you been lately?"
In the past, it would just be a few polite words, and I would get a few candies from her to appease the child, and that would be the end of it.
But this time was different. The neighboring aunties didn't stand on ceremony with her. Their first words were, "You're so thoughtful. You came back today specifically for Mingmei's sake, didn't you?"
Tang Mingli did indeed return because of Tang Mingmei's matter, but it's impossible for others to know that, so this statement is not true.
What's wrong with Tang Mingmei this time?
Just as Tang Mingli was about to ask the aunts what was going on, she heard her aunt's voice.
Looking up in the direction of the sound, they saw Li Hong standing on the second-floor corridor, excitedly shouting her name and waving for them to come upstairs quickly.
Seeing this, the neighboring aunties decided not to continue chatting with Tang Mingli.
"Go quickly, your aunt is overjoyed today."
Tang Mingli felt increasingly uneasy and, without further delay, quickly went upstairs with Fu Ci.
Li Hong had already walked to the stairwell to greet them. As soon as she saw them, she smiled and said, "What a coincidence! I was regretting that I didn't have a chance to inform you in advance, but I didn't expect you to come here today by such a coincidence."
Tang Mingli asked, "Is there something wrong today?"
Seeing my aunt's smiling face, it seemed like a happy occasion.
“That’s right.” Li Hong said, glancing in the direction of her front door, and lowered her voice, “Mingmei’s boyfriend is here.”
Although it was sudden, he arrived without prior notice, and he wasn't particularly good-looking—not even as good-looking as Fu Ci's finger—these shortcomings instantly became insignificant after seeing what he brought.
It's no exaggeration to say that Li Hong has never seen anyone bring so much meat to her door in her entire life.
Even her niece, who married into the Fu family, only brings a pound or two of meat each time she visits. But today, her daughter's fiancé brought a huge bag, which she estimates to be at least ten pounds.
What's the difference between this and sudden wealth?
Good heavens, Li Hong is finally living a good life.
Li Hong's lips hadn't stopped drooping all morning.
While her husband chatted with their daughter's boyfriend, she willingly prepared the elaborate lunch.
Now, seeing his niece and nephew-in-law brings him even more joy, as he feels this is an auspicious occasion.
Upon hearing that Tang Mingmei's boyfriend had come to their door, Tang Mingli and Fu Ci felt conflicted.
Tang Mingli, in particular, never expected things to turn out this way.
I only learned about this man from Li Baohua yesterday, and today he just happened to come to my door?
This made her suspect that Li Baohua had told his family everything after their meeting yesterday. The scumbag, afraid of losing Tang Mingmei, decided to go all in and settle things early in the morning.
Didn't I expect she might come to my door?
Tang Mingli deliberately said to Li Hong, "Why didn't you tell us in advance? We could have made some preparations."
Li Hong didn't want to tell the truth, but then she thought that they weren't outsiders, and that her daughter's wedding might require a lot of help from Tang Mingli, so she finally told the truth.
“We didn’t know beforehand; we only realized he was your cousin’s boyfriend when he was standing right in front of us.”
This answer undoubtedly confirmed Tang Mingli's suspicions, and her impression of Tang Mingmei's so-called boyfriend worsened.
Just as the two were chatting, Tang Mingmei, who had come out to look for Li Hong, also saw them.
Seeing that Fu Ci was also there, she subconsciously paused in her steps.
This was the second time she had seen Fu Ci since she was reborn.
The first time was at Tang Mingli's wedding. It was a joyous occasion, but he still didn't have much of a smile on his face.
Tang Mingmei secretly rejoiced, thinking that she would finally be free from this emotionless man in this life.
But this time when we met again, it seemed very different.
She couldn't quite put her finger on what was different.
That face still showed no smile, and those lips remained slightly pursed, silent. Only the aura emanating from him seemed less icy than in his previous life.
No, it must be an illusion.
It must be because the weather is sunny today that she has this illusion.
Tang Mingmei cheered herself up before taking a few more steps forward and looking at Tang Mingli, she asked, "Why did you come today?"
His attitude remained arrogant, causing Fu Ci to unconsciously frown.
He didn't like others treating his wife that way, even if the other person was her family.
Tang Mingmei noticed that Fu Ci suddenly straightened his face and even trembled slightly with nervousness. A voice in her heart urgently shouted, "See, see, it's still the same Fu Ci. It was just an illusion."
Tang Mingli didn't care about Tang Mingmei's attitude; she knew who Tang Mingmei was.
So he said in a similar tone, "It's nothing, I'll come and visit when I have time."
Thinking about how I didn't get to sleep in today because of her, and had to go out in the sun, only to see her sullen face when I arrived, I felt quite annoyed.
Li Hong sighed inwardly, puzzled as to why the two were at odds so soon after meeting, and quickly stepped in to smooth things over.
"Don't just stand here, come inside."
These words were naturally directed at Tang Mingli and Fu Ci.
-
Inside the house, two men were having a pleasant conversation.
After Tang Mingli came in, she called out "Uncle" and glanced at the man sitting opposite her uncle.
I've finally seen the true face of this scumbag.
You can't tell just by looking at it.
When Tang Jianguo saw Tang Mingli and Fu Ci, his smile deepened, and he asked happily, "Why did you suddenly come over?"
Is today a lucky day? They're all suddenly showing up at my door.
Tang Mingli repeated the same excuse, only saying that she wanted to come and see them.
Tang Jianguo quickly invited the two to sit down and gave them a formal introduction.
"This is Dazhu, Li Dazhu, Mingmei's boyfriend. This is his first time visiting."
"These are my niece Mingli and her husband Fu Ci."
Li Dazhu had heard of Tang Mingli and Fu Ci, and had even learned about the Fu family privately.
I've long harbored a desire to curry favor with such influential relatives.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. He had no idea that his sister knew Tang Mingli, and yesterday she even foolishly told her everything he had done.
God knows how furious he was when his sister tearfully told him everything yesterday; he really wanted to kill her.
But what's done is done, and even if you kill her, it won't make a difference. All you can do now is think about how to make amends.
The family put aside their past grievances and sat down together to discuss solutions.
After discussing it for half the night, they finally agreed that they should either give up or take a gamble.
Giving up would be a way to eliminate future troubles, and there would be no need to worry about Tang Mingmei causing a huge uproar if she found out about it later.
Li Dazhu knew Tang Mingmei's personality better than anyone else.
However, he also knew very well that if he broke up with Tang Mingmei, he would never be able to find someone as beautiful as her again in his life.
Ultimately, his desire to look good prevailed, and Li Dazhu gritted his teeth and decided to take a gamble.
So, instead of resting, he went to the meat processing plant before dawn, used his position to get more than ten kilograms of meat, and then rushed to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy several kilograms of candy, biscuits, etc., and carried them to the Tang family with big bags and small bags.
He wanted to finalize their marriage before Tang Mingmei found out everything.
And it should be done in a grand and public manner, ideally so that the whole neighborhood knows about it.
His sudden arrival inevitably startled Tang Mingmei.
Although the two had discussed when to formally visit her parents, it was only a half-joking discussion between them.
Fortunately, despite the initial shock, seeing his sincerity made her feel quite pleased, and she proudly introduced herself to his parents.
Li Dazhu has always been confident in his social skills, and with the generous gifts he prepared, he is confident that he can win over Tang Mingmei's parents.
Sure enough, upon seeing what she had brought and learning that he was a full-time employee of the meat processing plant, Tang's mother was the first to smile.
After chatting for a while, Tang's father's attitude changed.
Tang Mingmei was organizing the things she had brought when she saw so many candies and cookies, and she couldn't stop smiling.
Li Dazhu then casually remarked, "I've heard you mention that there are a lot of kids in your tenement building, so I bought some snacks."
Tang Mingmei did indeed say this when she was in the countryside.
But the original words were a complaint, complaining that those children seemed to be reincarnated from starving ghosts, and liked to beg for food from people.
The two dated for a year while they were in the countryside, so Li Dazhu knew her personality quite well. She was by no means generous, but she did like to show off.
Now that he's giving her face, she certainly won't miss this opportunity to make herself look good.
Sure enough, Tang Mingmei looked at the huge bag and said with a smug expression, "This is more than just a little; it must have cost a lot of money."
Li Dazhu smiled, which was taken as tacit agreement.
As he guessed, Tang Mingmei soon came out carrying a large plate of candy.
The neighbors on the floor below quickly learned of his existence.
Everything was going in the positive direction he had anticipated, until the appearance of Tang Mingli and her husband.
A moment of panic flashed through Li Dazhu's mind, but thinking that he would have to face this hurdle sooner or later, he quickly calmed down.
After Tang Jianguo introduced them to each other, he took the initiative to greet Fu Ci: "Hello."
Tang Mingli noticed that Li Dazhu wanted to shake hands, so she quickly pushed him forward and pulled him to sit down on the sofa.
She didn't want her husband to touch that scumbag's dirty hands.
Li Dazhu felt a little embarrassed and subtly withdrew his outstretched hand, then sat down.
All of this is not obvious, and it is likely that no one except the parties involved has noticed it.
Tang Jianguo also poured tea for Fu Fuci and Tang Mingli, saying as he poured, "Come and enjoy the tea that Dazhu brought."
Tang Mingli felt obliged to take the cup her uncle offered, so she reluctantly took a sip and immediately said, "Hmm, this tea is indeed extraordinary."
Tang Jianguo smiled and replied, "How is it unusual?"
Although this tea tastes good, it's still far inferior to the pre-Qingming spring tea that the Fu family gave us.
Tang Mingli said coldly, "The tea flavor is even strong."
Only Fu Ci noticed something was off about his wife's tone.
Tang Jianguo assumed she was giving Li Dazhu face by saying that, and even laughed and said, "Then drink more."
Unexpectedly, after Tang Mingli took another sip, she suddenly said something that embarrassed everyone present.
Tang Jianguo felt a little annoyed, realizing he shouldn't have responded with those words, and he was also unhappy that Tang Mingli was so insensible.
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